Beltane and our Sacral Chakra

Beltane, the 1st of May (31st October/1st November in the Southern hemisphere) is a cross-quarter day: The midpoint, where we sit equally between the spring equinox and the summer solstice, on our journey through the wheel of the year. A celebration rooted in Celtic traditions.

The name Beltane means ‘bright fire’ and marks the beginning of summer by celebrating the sun god Bel. Traditionally, big bonfires were lit and herdsmen would walk their animals through the smoke to bring protection for their livestock. Once the bonfires were smothered, the embers were then brought home and placed in the hearths, to encourage growth and protection of the household over the coming months. The festival was the first chance to have a big community gathering after the long and harsh winter months. With the warmer weather, gatherings were able to be taken outside and grow in size. It was a chance to throw off the winter slumber and stagnant energy together, and look forward to the more lively months ahead.

Today, Beltane celebrations look a little different but the same themes of growth, fertility and celebration remain the same. In modern day celebrations, people can be seen to be May pole dancing, which involves the playful weaving of brightly coloured ribbons by dancing around a central pole. This is believed to symbolise the weaving together of masculine and feminine energies; a nod to the fertile energy all around. Big feasts are another favourite – to gather your friends outside and feast, sharing tales and celebrating the big and small wins in life. Bonfires are still a firm favourite too providing a chance to burn away the old, warm up our souls and bodies, ready for the fluidity of the summer energies ahead.

The themes found in this festival are closely linked to our sacral chakra, Svadhishthana. This is one of the main energy wheels found in our body, located just below the navel, associated with bright orange and the element of water. This chakra is all about our creativity, sensuality and emotions – the life force behind our growth and connection with others. Like Beltane, Svadhishthana is all about new beginnings and bringing that fertile energy into our lives for new things to grow. When this chakra is out of balance we can feel a lack of vitality (like winter is lingering on), disconnect from our emotions, and feel creatively blocked. If this sounds familiar, perhaps we can channel Beltane’s fiery energy to shift what is stagnant and return mind and body to this chakra’s water element of freedom.

To bring more fluidity to our sacral chakras, we can dance around with loved ones or in the privacy of our own homes. Listen to music and really connect to the rhythm of the beats. See how your body wants to respond to the tune. As this is our hub of creativity, trying a new creative hobby can help bring in a sense of freedom and move the creativity block aside. By trying a new avenue of creativity, we can use the beginners mindset to go easier on ourselves and find that sense of enjoyment again. Why not give a paint-by-numbers a go, try out that new complex recipe or write the short story you have been wanting to see come to life? Immerse yourself in water. This can be a cold sea plunge, a swim in your local pool or a relaxing bath at home. Connect to the element of water and notice how it peaks and troughs between calm and energetic movement, before each time returning to a soft state of flow. What can you learn about yourself as you observe the water’s movements? How can the ebb and flow of our emotions be inspired by this?

Perhaps journaling is a ritual that can be of support to you at this time, to harness the natural abundance of Beltane. Some prompts to use as a starting point can be:
– What fuels my inner fire and why?
– How can I allow myself to flow more freely in my authentic self?
– Am I allowing myself to explore, play and experiment?

With summer now underway, take a look at the energy you want to encourage to grow in your life, what do you want to water and nurture? How can you become more fluid in your mind, body and soul connections, and what can the bright fire of Beltane ignite in your life? This is a time to reconnect and reclaim your visions and authentic energies, think about what lights up your soul, and what brings energy to your roots.

This blog post was written by Grace Cummins, Digital Communications Assistant at Kindred Spirit
and a hatha yoga teacher with a passion for holistic healing modalities.